Gripping tool jaws



Aug. 19, 1958 F. \O. CAIN 2,847,889

GRIPPING TOOL JAWS Filed Jan. 24, 1955 Ferie/l 0. Gain 7 INVENTOR.

Attorney United States Patent Office 2,847,889 Patented Aug. 19, 1958GRIPPIN G TOOL JAWS Ferrell 0. Cain, Geneva, Ala., assignor of one-halfto J. Lewis Phillips, Geneva, Ala.

Application January 24, 1955, Serial No. 483,496 1 Claim. (Cl. 81-425)This invention generally relates to a tool, and more specificallyprovides improved and novel construction in a gripping tool generallyknown as pliers.

An object of this invention is to provide a gripping tool in the natureof a pair of pliers having a pair of elongated members pivotallyattached or connected together which at one end form a pair of handlesand at the other end form a pair of jaws which may be pivoted towardeach other for gripping purposes.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a gripping toolhaving two members pivoted together and crossed with a spring membernormally urging the gripping jaws and the handle portions away from eachother.

Still another important object of the present invention is to provide agripping tool in the nature of a pair of pliers that includes new anduseful gripping jaw structure wherein both longitudinal and transverseserrations are provided on the gripping or facing surfaces of the jawfor increasing the efliciency and effectiveness of the grippingsurfaces.

Yet another important feature of the present invention is to provide agripping tool having gripping jaws with surfaces thereon wherein aportion of the gripping surface is defined by a raised portion at oneside and a recessed portion at the other side wherein the tool may beused for gripping various sizes and types of objects, thereby increasingthe utility of the tool.

A still further novel feature of the present invention is to provide agripping tool having transversely and longitudinally serrated faces thatis provided with a longitndinal portion at the ends thereof having thelongitudinal serrations whereby the tool may be utilized to grip a bolthead or the like wherein the tool will generally extend longitudinallyin the same plane as the bolt.

Other important objects of the present invention will reside in itssimplicity of construction, efiiciency of use, compactness, versatility,adaptation for its various purposes and relative inexpensivemanufacturing costs.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of the gripping tool of the presentinvention;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the gripping tool of the presentinvention, looking at the other side of the tool from that illustratedin Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an end elevational view showing the ends of the grippingjaws of the tool of the present invention;

Figure 4 is an enlarged side elevational view showing the gripping jawsin open position; and

Figure 5 is a top plan sectional view taken substantially upon a planepassing along section line 55 of Figure 1 showing the details ofconstruction of one of the jaws.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, it will be seen that thenumeral 10 generally designates the gripping tool of the presentinvention. The tool 10 includes a pair of elongated members 12 and 14which are crossed and pivotally connected to each other by a pivot pin16. One end of the member 12 is provided with a handle portion 18 andthe other end of the member 12 is provided with a jaw 20. One end of theelongated member 14 is provided with a handle portion 22 and the otherend thereof is provided with a gripping jaw 24 wherein the gripping jaws20 and 24 are moved towards each other by moving the handle portions 18and 22 towards each other by gripping with a hand. Each of the jawportions 20 and 24 are provided with a laterally projecting pin 26 and28 that receives the hook ends 30 of a generally circular spring 32. Thespring 32 surrounds the pivot axis formed by the pivot pin 16, and thehook ends 30 are free from each other and are positioned around the pins26 and 28 wherein the spring 32 will normally urge the jaws 20 and 24away from each other and pivot the elongated members 12 and 14 about thepivot pin 16, thereby moving the handles 18 and 20 away from each other.Therefore, it will be readily seen that the members 12 and 14 arenormally urged so that the jaws 20 and 24 will be open.

The members 12 and 14 are generally elongated and thin, and the jaws 20and 24 are formed by laterally extending shoulders 34 and 36 which areintegrally formed with the members 12 and 14 and which form relativelywide surfaces 38 which face each other for gripping various objects. Theside edges of the faces 38 generally taper inwardly as does thethickness of the jaws 20 and 24. This tapering generally gives the jaws20 and 24 a pointed effect with the free ends thereof being flattened asindicated by the numeral 40.

The surface 38 adjacent the forward portion thereof is provided with alongitudinal concave portion 42 having a plurality of longitudinalserrations 44 therein and the concave portion 42 is formed by side edges46 that are provided with transverse serrations 48 and an end wall 49forming a transverse abutment limiting the longitudinal insertion of anarticle to be gripped. The

longitudinal serrations 44 are generally diverging in conformance withthe side edges of the facing surface 38, thereby permitting theserration 44 to grip a bolt head or nut with the handle portions 18 and20 generally forming a longitudinal extension of such a bolt, therebypermitting the gripping tool 10 to be used in relatively inaccessiblepositions Adjacent the rear of the surface 38 is a shoulder 50 whichforms a cutting edge on each of the jaws 20 and 24. This permits the useof the tool 10 in cutting wires or other similar material, therebyincreasing the utility of the tool.

The surface 38 between the concave portion 42 and the shoulder 50 isprovided with a longitudinal shoulder 52 which divides the surface 38into two areas 54 and 56. The area 54 is disposed below the plane of thearea 56 and is generally concave, as illustrated in Figure 2' Both ofthe surfaces 54 and 56 are provided with transverse serrations 58 forgripping and the surface 56 as well as the surface 54 is generallyconcave with the surface 56 including outwardly projecting serrations 60which form a gripping area by contact with similar serrations 60 on theother of the jaws. Forwardly of the projecting serrations 60, all of theserrations normally contact each other when the handles 18 and 22 aremoved to their most adjacent position. It will be seen that the areas 54and 56 being disposed at two different levels permit the gripping toolof the present invention to be utilized for gripping objects of a widerange of sizes in a most efficient and effective manner. Also, theparticular construction of the nose or outer end of the jaws 20 and 2451 permits use of the tool 10 as a staple puller, gripping tool and as asubstitute for a wrench wherein the device may be utilized in a highlyinaccessible area.

If the tool of the present invention is constructed of suitablematerials normally utilized in constructing tools of this nature, itwill be highly useful and versatile for many purposes, such as rotatingnuts, pulling staples, cutting wires, bending and forming wires, turningand removing taps, and many other varied and allied purposes. 7

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will bereadily understood and further explanation is believed to beunnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction shown and described, andaccordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resortedto, falling Within the scope of the appended claim:

What is claimed as new is as follows:

In a gripping tool, a pair of opposed gripping jaws movable towards eachother about a common pivot point, each of said jaws including alongitudinal concave surface extending to the free end thereof andterminating at its inner end in a transverse abutment for limiting thelongitudinal insertion of an article to be gripped, said concave surfacehaving a plurality of inwardly diverging longitudinal serrations thereinfor gripping the article, said concave surface being defined by flatedge portions having transverse gripping serrations therein, the portionof each jaw inwardly of the transverse abutment having transverseconcave portions separated at the longitudinal center of the jaw by alongitudinal shoulder thus forming concave portions of different depths,the concave portion on each side of the shoulder having transverseserrations therein with the ridges and valleys of the serrations beingin transverse alignment, said longitudinal shoulder limiting thetransverse insertion of an article to be gripped.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNlTED STATES PATENTS272,573 Mihan Feb. 20, 1883 669,721 Bruce Mar. 12, 1901 1,116,093 McKaigNov. 3, 1914 1,367,362 Earnhart Feb. 1, 1921 1,657,348 Drumm Jan. 24,1928 1,661,333 Gurnett Mar. 6, 1928 FOREIGN PATENTS 909,393 France Dec.20, 1945

